Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina

About: Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina is a education organization based out in Florianópolis, Brazil. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 28408 authors who have published 55433 publications receiving 714461 citations.

COVID-19 crisis and SMEs responses: The role of digital transformation

Abstract: In addition to causing dramatic damage to people's health, the coronavirus has affected also the financial health of companies worldwide Among them, SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) tend to be more vulnerable Characteristics such as scarcity of financial resources and lack of specialized knowledge make their situation even harder This pandemic has resulted in increased digital transformation, changes in customer behavior and the managerial and technological knowledge gap to address them Therefore, this article discusses the general weaknesses, strengths, challenges and opportunities for SMEs to face this pandemic, and how the field of knowledge management (KM) can help Based on the concepts of organizational resilience, we drafted a conceptual model to illustrate how their first responses were and how they could become more adapted First, we conducted a literature search to investigate how SMEs responded to this scenario We found responses to the financial impacts in the form of mass layoffs, temporary and permanent closures, bootstrapping of digitalization and strategic alliances In the discussions section, we raise some key questions to demonstrate how knowledge can improve the role of digital transformation We approach how a KM strategy could start from organizational resilience concepts to assist SMEs to seize digital transformation opportunities As practical implications, our research raises awareness of digital transformation's role as a set of tools to adapt during and after the pandemic, along with resilience engineering and knowledge management principles Future researchers can use this report as a conceptual guide to start their own response and adaptation plans

Effect of marble and granite sludge in clay materials

Abstract: The use of industrial waste materials as additives in the manufacture of ceramic products has been attracting a growing interest from researchers in recent years and is becoming common practice. This work describes the changes in the behavior of the clay material used in a red-clay industry due to additions of a granite and marble sludge, produced in an ornamental stone processing industry in Rio Grande do Norte-Brazil. Mixtures of clay and waste material (10–50 wt.%) were uniaxially pressed and sintered at temperatures ranging from 950 to 1150 °C. Results from chemical and mineralogical analysis (XRD and XRF), thermal analysis (DTA, TG and dilatometry), apparent density, water absorption and flexural strength, show that the granite and marble sludge can be added to the clay material with no detrimental effect on the properties of the sintered red-clay products. The reject acts as a flux agent, reducing the sintering temperature of the clay material.